


Prince of Stars

by Dalankar



Category: Topp Dogg (Band), 방탄소년단 | Bangtan Boys | BTS
Genre: Alternate Universe - Science Fiction, Character Death, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-08-07
Updated: 2016-10-29
Packaged: 2018-04-13 11:12:48
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 11,377
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4519734
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Dalankar/pseuds/Dalankar
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The most remarkable ship in the entire star system: The Princess Jin. This is the story of how it got its name.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Prince of Stars

They call it the Princess Jin.

It is the most remarkable ship in the entire star system. Not just because it's a state of the art space cruiser, fastest ship in the galaxy. Only three were ever made, all for the exclusive use of the royal family. Or because it has never lost a fight. But for the reputation of the people who inhabit it, the ship has never seen a drop of blood shed on its pristine floors.

It didn't start off as the Princess Jin, but with a long federation name with too many letters and numbers that no one but Namjoon could remember. Kim Namjoon, the commander of the king's security forces, one of the most dangerous men their galaxy has ever produced, and especially tasked with protecting the crown prince.

Crown Prince Seokjin. Better known as Jin by his friends (and princess Jin for the rarest few) and the common people alike, and infinitely better liked than his father who had waged war on multiple worlds until he had unified multiple star systems together. He had won many allies. But he had gained even more enemies who relentlessly continue to plot the destruction of the king's blood line.

 

It is not meant to be an especially dangerous journey, to one of the outskirt worlds where they had been told that unrest is brewing. The prince is to simply visit the planet, Chandra, meet with the caretakers and placate the people. He has done this before, enough times so successfully that this should be a clinch.

His usual retinue of guards and assistants (who are also highly trained in multiple forms of combat) accompany him on this journey. Of all the people that the king has surrounded the prince with (and those who accidentally fell into the prince's circle), these six people are the ones he has kept. Some of them, the prince has known since childhood, and others have joined later but he loves them. And the people say that this is the difference between the king and the prince, the prince loves the people while the king rules them.

Namjoon, already holding such a high post in the court, never fails to follow the prince wherever he goes, at times to the displeasure of the king. But Namjoon knows how valuable his skills are to the kingdom and how much the king needs him. After all, it had been Namjoon who had cleared the path for the king to come into power. The day when he becomes obsolete, well, Namjoon will deal with that when it happens. But the prince does not go anywhere without him, the prince will never come to any harm under Namjoon's watch.

 

Yoongi makes one half of the prince's personal guard. He's known the prince for the longest time. His earliest memory of the prince is playing in the royal gardens, and accidentally becoming stranded on top of a tree until they had to be rescued by the palace guards. A year older than him, the prince had held his hand and promised him that everything will be alright. The thing is Yoongi doesn't remember being scared, all he remembers is how warm the prince's hand had been, and how he'd smiled even though his eyes were a little teary. Then he'd left for training, only visiting the capital twice a year and the prince always smiled at him as though he never left. As they grew up and Yoongi assimilated more and more scars on his body and the prince's shoulders became burdened by responsibility, Yoongi had made him a promise.

 

_I will never leave your side, Seokjin, my Seokjin, don't ever lose your smile._

 

Yoongi had graduated the best knight the kingdom has ever seen. And he intends to keep his promise to his last breath. The prince always shakes his head whenever he says this.

 

_That's crazy, Yoongi, how can I smile if you're not there?_

 

The other half of the prince's personal guard, Jeon Jungkook, lived in the slums before the prince found him. A scrawny kid, too small for the fierceness in his eyes, he had been getting a beating from a bunch of older kids when the prince found him on one of his weekly pilgrimages outside the capital walls. Jungkook knows he would have died if the prince hadn't intervened. He had woken up on a soft mattress, scrubbed clean of a lifetime of grime and the prince had been sitting by his side. Jungkook had honestly thought he'd died and gone to heaven. Surely no one but an angel could be as beautiful or smile so sweetly. He became the prince's shadow from that day on, and miraculously the prince didn't send him away, much to the displeasure of that idiot Yoongi. Of course then he'd chosen battle school because he wanted to be able to protect his prince. He'd endured those three years holding on to the knowledge that at the end of it, he'd never have to leave the prince again.

 

Taehyung and Jimin are his personal assistants, there to help the prince with whatever he needs, everything that lies between waking up in the morning and getting ready for bed at night. They are sons of minor nobles, introduced to the court during those lonely years when both Yoongi and Jungkook were away from the castle. They had attached themselves to the prince who had been willing to endure their wild levels of energy to ward away loneliness. (Taehyung also fills in as the ship's pilot. Although the others, mostly Yoongi and Hoseok, had thought this a bad idea, the prince had allowed it on the grounds that Taehyung does not make any unscheduled detours along the way. Last time he'd nearly gotten them all sucked into a black hole because he was curious to see what was inside).

 

Jung Hoseok is the prince's advisor, political and otherwise. He was appointed by the king to try to convince the prince to let go of the unsuitable company that he keeps. But it did not take Hoseok long to realise that low born does not mean a thing to the prince and it'd be easier to convince the prince to abdicate than to expect him to let Yoongi or Jungkook go. Hoseok sincerely thinks the prince would be a much better king than the current one, although he's never told the prince this, he simply bides his time until that the day comes when the prince would finally ascend and knows the whole galaxy would be a better place for it.

 

 

Yoongi and Jungkook are sparring again. They do this a lot. Yoongi wins most of the time, and the few times Jungkook has won, well, he never lets Yoongi forget it. Taehyung is in the central command room, steering them through an asteroid cloud. Namjoon is looking over the flight path, while keeping an eye on the frown that is growing on the prince's face. Jimin is rubbing the prince's shoulders because the conversation he is currently having with Hoseok is making the prince increasingly frustrated.

"The drill is destroying their forests, of course they're angry," the prince says slowly.

Hoseok sighs. "Yes," he agrees, "but my prince, you have to remember that it was your father who have the drilling rights to his best friend's brother."

The prince's eyes narrow, his hands clenching at his sides. "I won't have a whole planet dying for the sake of a few gallons of oil."

"It's more like a trillion credits worth of oil, my prince," Hoseok reminds him carefully and holds up his hands when the prince looks at him angrily. "I understand how you feel. But you cannot rebuke them outright. They are one of the wealthiest supporters of your father's regime."

"The people shouldn't have to pay for the greed of the wealthy, Hoseok," the prince says softly, rubbing a hand over his eyes.

"Prince Seokjin, you have to relax," Jimin reminds him, "your muscles are going to be all knotted otherwise."

Yoongi, in the process of slowly dislocating Jungkook's shoulder, looks up. Jungkook uses the opportunity to pull away from Yoongi's grip.

"I need to be alone for a while," the prince announces, walking away.

Jungkook shares a look with Yoongi. Yoongi follows after the prince, Jungkook only a step behind.

Hoseok sighs and runs a hand through his hair.

"He will be a great king one day," Jimin says, not only to comfort Hoseok, whose job he does not envy.

"But he needs to survive being the crown prince first," Hoseok tells him, shaking his head when Jimin's eyes widen. "This will be the most dangerous thing he's done in his life."

"That's why he's got us," Namjoon says, "we won't let anything happen to him."

Jimin looks to him. "Is it going to be that bad?"

"None of the other resistance groups have lasted this long," Namjoon tells him, sharing a look with Hoseok, "we think Red Planet is supporting them."

Red Planet. With an unyielding resistance to the king and his reign, is made up from those inhabiting the planets the king had invaded. They are spread all throughout the galaxy and have been causing more than enough trouble for the king. Their last major attack had been three years ago when they had dared attack the kings royal transport as he was visiting one of his moons. Namjoon had gotten wind of their plan only hours before the king had left. They had hit Red Planet so hard that Namjoon had hoped they'd disappear but his sources tell him that they're stirring trouble again and he wishes that the king had not sent the prince here. And he wishes he could have brought along a larger force, if only to deter any potential attacks.

Jimin's eyes widen almost comically. "And you brought the prince here! How could you? Why would you?"

Namjoon raises an eyebrow. "Do you somehow think it was my decision?"

"But-"

"We're going to protect him," Namjoon tells him firmly, "we can protect him better than a thousand men. Do you doubt this?"

Jimin stares at Namjoon for a moment, then shakes his head. "I know we can."

 

Seokjin loves to cook. Yoongi knows that at the palace he doesn't get the chance, it is inappropriate for a prince to do such menial work, but out here in space, the Seokjin insists. And since none of them, even Hoseok who is the designated cook, can cook as well as the prince, they never really complain.

Seokjin is currently stirring some vegetables with more force than necessary. Jungkook is beside him, beating some eggs and Yoongi is leaning against the table, watching the prince stab at the vegetables. He sighs when a piece of carrot goes flying and straightens up.

"Jin."

Seokjin's shoulders draw together. Jungkook looks at the prince and then glares at Yoongi.

"I'm okay," Seokjin tells them.

Yoongi steps closer. "You're angry."

The prince sighs and turns around. "I love my father, I do. But-" Yoongi knows, Yoongi knows how much the prince loves his people and how much it hurts him that his father does not. He reaches out a hand and Seokjin catches it.

"It's okay, hyung," Jungkook says and Seokjin's face brightens as it always does when Jungkook calls him hyung, "you can fix this. I know you can."

The prince smiles. "I wish I had as much faith in me as you do, Jungkook."

"He's right," Yoongi says. Seokjin looks at him with startled eyes. "You're the only one in the whole galaxy who can fix this."

Seokjin laughs softly. "You believe in me so much?"

Yoongi lifts Seokjin's hand to his lips and kisses the knuckles. "We all do."

 

Trouble comes when they're passing through a patch of barren space. No stars. No planets. Not even a worm hole. Taehyung's got the ship on autopilot, cruising by thousands of miles in seconds. They're playing cards in the kitchen. Jungkook, who has lost the last seven times in a row, is starting to get angry, a vein beginning to pop on his forehead. Especially prominent when Yoongi points at it occasionally and laughs.

Taehyung's head snaps up in alarm a moment before the ship's warning siren sounds.

Namjoon is on his feet in a beat.

"Taehyung, flight control. Jimin, Hoseok, the guns. Yoongi, Jungkook, take the prince to the safe room. Let's go!" He commands, and they rush.

"Namjoon-" the prince hesitates. Namjoon, who'd been about to follow Taehyung, turns back.

"Might be something. Could be nothing. But until we figure it out, you need to be safe, my prince."

The prince swallows, and nods. Then Jungkook and Yoongi hustle the prince towards the safe room.

Taehyung has silenced the alarm and is in the process of accessing the long distance scanners when Namjoon enters.

"Two ships, hyung," Taehyung tells him, bringing them up on the main screen.

Old. Unlicensed.

Red Planet.

Coming up on them fast.

Namjoon patches on to the intercom. "Jimin, Hoseok. On our six o'clock. Take them out."

"With pleasure, skipper," Jimin answers.

"Give us something harder next time," Hoseok chuckles.

Namjoon takes a moment to shake his head.

"Hyung!" Taehyung yells and Namjoon sees two more ships materialize in front of them.

Jimin and Hoseok won't be able to handle this alone. Taehyung meets his eyes. Namjoon nods.

"Go."

Taehyung grins. Namjoon slips into the controls as Taehyung runs for the battle pod.

"I got him!" He hears Jimin laugh over the comms just before he swerves to avoid the laser blast from one of their latest opponents.

"Keep the fucking ship steady!" Hoseok snaps.

"Just finish the job, Hobi," Namjoon tells him, veering left.

"Namjoon hyung? Where's Tae?" Jimin asks.

As if on cue, Namjoon sees him. Speeding out into view, placing himself between them and their enemies.

"Let's play!" Namjoon hears Taehyung yell happily.

It is an amazing thing. To watch Taehyung fly. Namjoon has never seen a thing like it. Taehyung flies like he's got wings. Invincible, deadly wings. The first ship explodes within a few seconds. The second decides to make a hasty retreat but Taehyung flies under his belly, firing his lasers directly under the ship. Namjoon fights to keep their ship steady as the shock wave from the blast reaches them.

As Taehyung swoops around their ship joyously, Namjoon puts in a call to the capital. The king's face appears on the screen, the bejeweled crown settled comfortably in his grey hair.

"What is it, Namjoon?"

"Sir, we were just attacked by four Red Planet ships."

The king raises an eyebrow. "And?"

"We were able to destroy them, sir. But for the safety of Prince Seokjin, I ask that you let us return to capital and return with a larger force."

The king's eyes fix somewhere off screen.

"No," the answer comes finally, and the king turns his gaze towards him, "I want this damn problem fixed. I'm sick of these vermin who think they can force my hand."

"Sir-"

"Get it done, Namjoon. I don't care how you do it."

Namjoon stares at the black screen for a moment, then turns when he senses someone shift behind him.

The prince is standing at the threshold. He meets Namjoon's eyes for a moment.

"Thank you, Namjoon, for keeping me safe," the prince says, voice soft.

Namjoon clenches his jaw, fingernails digging into his palms and nods.

He's always wanted to protect the prince. From anything and everything. But he doesn’t know how to keep him safe from the thing that hurts him the most.

 

Yoongi lets Jungkook hover as the prince is getting ready for bed, and goes off to find Namjoon, who he finds standing at the window of the observation deck. The universe sparkles beyond him but Yoongi sees that his eyes are closed.

"When we land," Namjoon speaks suddenly and if Yoongi was less well trained he'd have startled, "don't leave his side. Not even for a second."

That Namjoon feels the need to tell him this, it is enough to tell Yoongi that he's nervous. Maybe even afraid.

"I won't," he's answers. "They're such morons, Red Planet. Seokjin is the one person who would give them any chance."

Namjoon nods. "They want to end the royal line. They think freedom will be that easy."

"I want-" Yoongi pauses, glancing sideways at Namjoon, wondering how he will take it, "I want to take him away. From all of this. I want to see him smile happily again."

Namjoon is silent for a while.

"He'll never go. Seokjin will never leave his people. But-" Namjoon sighs softly, "but I wish we could take him away too."

 

Seokjin is sitting on his bed when Yoongi arrives. The bed is so big that even with the prince's frame, he looks almost dwarfed by it. Jimin and Taehyung have already retired for the night. Their room is just on the other side of the corridor from the prince's, in case he needs them for anything. Jungkook is sitting beside the prince. He is smiling. So brightly like he only does when he is with Seokjin. They look up when Yoongi enters. Jungkook's smile fades, but he doesn't move away from the prince.

Seokjin smiles.

Yoongi leans against the bed post, crossing his arms over his chest.

"You should get some rest, prince Seokjin, we arrive tomorrow," Yoongi tells him softly.

"I think maybe you need the rest more than I do, Yoongi," Seokjin says.

Yoongi grins. "I'll take first watch," he tells Jungkook, who says nothing but draws himself up on to the bed in agreement.

"Goodnight, Yoongi."

Yoongi holds Seokjin's eyes for a moment. "Goodnight, my prince."

He watches as Seokjin pulls the covers around Jungkook and folds him into his arms.

Jungkook's eyes are already closed. He knows this is Jungkook's favorite part of the day. Yoongi hides a smile and walks over to switch off the light.

He settles into the chair beside the table and watches over his prince as he sleeps.

 

The arrival is as chaotic as they expect. The officials, mixed with the media and security. The prince smiles and waves as expected, Hoseok beside him whispering to him quietly at necessary times. Jimin and Taehyung are a step ahead of the prince, assessing for threats and keeping people from getting needlessly close. Yoongi and Jungkook flank the prince, blank faces not betraying their hyper-vigilant minds. Namjoon follows, watching over the prince from the back. So far, so good. But they've barely stepped out of the ship.

At the dinner it becomes starkly clear that the officials governing Chandra are on the same side as the drilling company, Lee Corporation. Namjoon watches the prince's face darken as every single person at the dinner speak in favor of the drill.

By the time they get back to the royal quarters, the prince is seething.

"How am I supposed to mediate a conflict when I only hear from one side!" The prince snaps, shrugging off his jacket and throwing it on the chair. "I bet they won't even let me meet any of the delegates from the people. How dare they do this? How dare they think that I will simply let this go!"

Taehyung is watching with wide eyes. It is rare to see the prince this angry. It takes a lot to make the prince so angry. Last time the prince was this angry was when palace security had tried to transfer Jungkook and fill his post with another guard from a better blood line. Namjoon had known the king had been behind the attempt, but it had been the palace security chief who had paid the price.

"Your highness, please calm down," Hoseok says in a soothing voice.

The prince turns, eyes blazing. "Did you know this? Did you know they would try to do this?"

To his credit Hoseok doesn't looked cowed at all. "I suspected they might try something like this-" the prince takes a furious breath but Hoseok continues, "-that's why I've arranged a meeting with the leaders of the rebellion tomorrow."

Namjoon who'd known this already, watches as Yoongi's head snaps up but it's Jungkook who speaks.

"Is that safe?"

"The army will accompany us. Even if they don't like it, there's nothing they can do unless they want to refuse a royal request," Hoseok informs them.

The prince finally lets Jimin and Taehyung attend him. "Thank you, Hoseok."

Hoseok smiles. "We're all on your side, my prince."

Namjoon smiles to himself when he sees the prince turn pink.

"I know-" the prince looks around at them all, "-thank you."

 

Yoongi and Hoseok seek him out afterwards.

"You know it won't just be the government who wouldn't want the prince meeting with the rebels," Yoongi says quietly, a restless thumb tracing over the hilt of the dagger he keeps holstered at his hip.

"You mean Lee Corp has more to lose if the prince gets swayed by the rebels? I know that. The prince is not safe whichever side he turns."

Namjoon runs a hand through his hair. And he doesn't know how much he trusts the army to protect the prince. Not when he doesn't know whose pocket they're in.

"So you still think tomorrow is a good idea?" Yoongi asks.

"Doesn't matter what I think. The prince won't change his mind."

Yoongi holds his eyes for a moment before cursing fiercely.

Hoseok laughs. "Never thought I'd say this but I'll be happy when we're back in space again."

 

Jungkook is on watch duty first. Yoongi lies on the bed facing the prince as he traces patterns on Yoongi's skin.

"You make me brave," Seokjin whispers, a finger tracing down over Yoongi's nose. "I'd never be able to do these things if you weren't here with me."

Yoongi leans in and presses his lips against Seokjin's. "You'd be brilliant if I was here or not."

Seokjin shifts closer and buries his face in Yoongi's shoulder. Yoongi folds him close. "I prefer to be brilliant with you."

Yoongi smiles, even if Seokjin cannot see him. He threads his fingers through Seokjin's silky hair. "I prefer that too."

 

Namjoon isn't even surprised when trouble comes. But it doesn't mean he welcomes it. It doesn't mean things are going to turn out the way he hopes.

Taehyung veers the car a sharp left when the first grenade explodes in front of them, throwing the truck full of soldiers, which had been preceding them, into the air.

"Turn back!" Namjoon shouts, gripping onto the side of the car and twisting around to check that the prince is safe. Yoongi has the prince crouching low, leaning over him protectively, narrowed eyes searching for danger. Jungkook has two guns in his hands, ready to take on anything.

"Don't!" Hoseok yells, and Namjoon cranes his head back and sees the barricade of soldiers barring their way.

The bastards! Namjoon grits his teeth. He'll be damned if he lets them have their way.

"Taehyung, hard left. Don't stop."

Taehyung steps on it, and steers them out of a blaze of gunfire within moments.

Of course it is not so easy. They are followed by squads of black clad soldiers in vans. Jimin calmly pulls out his long range rifle, sets himself at the back, Hoseok flanking him, and sets about taking out their enemy, one blown tire at a time.

"We need to get back to the air base!" Yoongi shouts over the gunfire, Jungkook has also joined Jimin and Hoseok at the back, "we need to get off this damned planet."

"Taehyung-" Namjoon swears when another enemy truck materialize in front of them and Taehyung breaks so hard that they skid forward a few meters, tires squealing in protest.

For a moment they just stare, both Namjoon and Taehyung levelling their guns at their new opponents.

Then two motorcycles appear next to them. What happens next happens so fast that Namjoon barely has the time to react.

One motorcyclist lifts up a grenade launcher and aims it at the truck in front of them. The launcher fires.

"Everybody get down!" Namjoon yells, pulling Taehyung down as debris fly past them and their car shudders with the impact of the shock wave from the blast.

"Come with us if you want to live," says the other motorcyclist, his face hidden by a black helmet.

Namjoon meets Yoongi's eyes, then the prince's.

The prince nods.

"Taehyung, let's go."

Taehyung straightens up, wiping the blood dribbling down his face with one hand and grins.

"Go go," he laughs, stepping on the accelerator.

They hear another explosion behind them as they scramble down another alley way.

And they get away. Namjoon doesn't know how they do it but they manage to leave the army behind as they follow after the motorcyclist.

"Namjoon," Hoseok calls, and there is something in his voice, a tremour, that has Namjoon turning back immediately. And there at the back, with the Prince bending worriedly over him, is Jimin. Jimin, with his eyes squeezed shut and face twisted in pain. Namjoon's heart skips a beat.

"Keep going," he instructs Taehyung, who doesn't appear to have noticed anything wrong, before passing over to the back.

"The bullet passed through his shoulder," Hoseok says, keeping his voice low.

"I'm okay, hyung," Jimin tells him with gritted teeth.

The prince has taken off his jacket, pressing it to the wound, and he looks at Namjoon with worried eyes.

"Who is it that helped us?"

"My best guess, my prince, is that they're part of the rebel group. No one else gains anything by helping us right now."

"But can we trust them with prince Seokjin?" Jungkook asks.

Before Namjoon can answer, the prince speaks. "We trust whoever can help Jimin right now." He looks at Namjoon with resolute eyes, "do whatever you can to save him."

Namjoon nods.

 

They come to a stop at an old warehouse, one that is so run down that no one would think it is inhabited. The black rider hops off his bike and beckons them in.

The prince shifts Jimin into his arms and steps out after Jungkook, ignoring protests from Hoseok and Jimin himself. Yoongi follows behind and witnesses the moment when Taehyung notices the injured Jimin. He gasps, a choked little cry, and runs over.

"Jimin," Taehyung whispers, reaching out a tentative hand, and Yoongi is close enough to see Jimin's eyes open slowly, to see him try to smile.

"I'm okay," he promises, and his eyes widen. "You're hurt."

Taehyung shakes his head, wiping at the blood smeared over his forehead, "I'm not. I'm not."

Jimin's eyes fall shut again and Taehyung looks up at Seokjin with wide eyes.

"He's going to be fine," the prince promises softly, and Yoongi sees the moment Taehyung decides to trust Seokjin with Jimin's life. Taehyung nods.

"Let's head in," Namjoon says.

Yoongi pulls out his guns and flanks the prince with Jungkook on the other side, with Namjoon before them and Taehyung and Hoseok behind them.

The black rider waits for them beside the door.

"Who are you?" Namjoon asks, coming to a stop. The rider takes a moment, but eventually takes off his helmet. He's young. Probably close to his own age. There is a scar, jagged and long, that stretches over his left cheek and makes his eye droop.

"We are the people who love this world," the rider answers, his eyes on Seokjin. Yoongi bristles at his insolence.

"We are not against you," the prince says, "I am not."

The rider watches Seokjin for a long moment. "But your father is."

Seokjin's face tightens for a moment. "I can help you."

The rider's eyes flicker down to Jimin, asleep now, in Seokjin's arms.

"Looks like you need our help first."

 

There are seventeen people, eleven men and six women, scattered throughout the warehouse. The noise level rises when they enter and falls afterwards. They look remarkably calm for having the crown prince and his retinue break into their secret hideout.

After Jimin gets taken away for some emergency medical intervention, Taehyung and Jungkook by his side, they finally sit down to talk to the rebels.

The rider offers them steaming bowls of something that smells delicious and makes Namjoon realise he's starving. He looks at the prince, who is used to eating food that don't come out a packet, but he is eating the soup happily.

"You're Red Planet, aren't you?" The prince asks, halfway into the bowl.

The rider, Hyosang, he'd introduced himself, Namjoon doesn't know if that is his real name or not, nods.

"We're the only ones left of Red Planet after you-" Hyosang looks accusingly at Namjoon, "-nearly wiped us out three years ago."

"But clearly you still have enough resources to attack us in mid space," Yoongi growls, setting his empty bowl down on the floor.

"What are you talking about?"

Yoongi scoffs out a laugh. "Should we refresh your memory? Or do you just expect us to be so fucking grateful that we don't even mention how you sent four fighter jets to destroy us two days ago!"

Hyosang looks stunned. "We barely have enough resources to keep ourselves fed, let alone have four fighter jets."

"If it wasn't you, then who was it?" Hoseok wonders, just as the answer clicks in Namjoon's brain.

"Who gains the most from the prince never arriving at his destination? With one attack, they remove the prince and doom Red Planet at the same time," he says softly.

Hyosang runs a hand through his shirt cropped hair, face twisting into a grimace. "They've been parading around as us ever since we lost the power to fight back. They're using our ghost for their own ends."

"Things are worse than I thought," the prince whispers, "I never thought Lee Corp would dare."

"When trillions of credits are on the line, your highness, they've definitely dared," Hoseok comments. "But that still doesn't explain why you chose to help us? To put it mildly, you've despised the royal line since it began."

Hyosang chuckles, eyes on the prince. "We saw what you did on Aurora. You saved those people. You even offered yourself as a hostage-" Namjoon barely suppresses a shudder. Aurora is one part of his history that he wishes to forget. Not because he had nearly died. But because he had nearly lost the prince. He knows the prince doesn't regret it. He knows the prince would do it again in a heartbeat. But Namjoon would never, in all of his lives, ever repeat that mistake again. "-you're not like your father."

"My father is king," the prince reminds him.

Hyosang shakes his head. "You should be king. But they'll never let you, your father's powerful friends. They'll never let you ascend the throne. They know you'll never be on their side."

The prince's eyes widen and Namjoon realizes that it hadn't even occurred to him. There is an innocence about the prince that defies his station. Prince Seokjin trusts people. He believes in their inherent goodness and it breaks Namjoon's heart every time they let him down.

"They won't succeed," Namjoon tells him, "they won't be able to stop the prince."

The prince's face softens into a smile.

"Can you help us get to our ship?" Hoseok asks.

"You want to go back?" Hyosang asks, eyes on the prince.

"I will talk to my father. I won't let Lee Corp do this anymore," the prince tells him.

Hyosang glances at Namjoon briefly before looking back at the prince. "I don't think that's a good idea," he says softly.

"Why not?" Yoongi asks.

Namjoon thinks Hyosang's eyes are just a little sad when he says, "because he declared you dead yesterday. I don't think he's expecting you to come back."

It takes a moment to process and when it does, it takes every single ounce of control Namjoon has to not hit something.

The chair unbalances and falls when the prince rises to his feet.

"Excuse me," he whispers before turning around and heading for the door. Yoongi follows after him, and Namjoon sees Jungkook detach himself from Taehyung and head out after them.

"Fuck," Hoseok snaps. "This is worse than goddamn Aurora."

Namjoon disagrees but he says nothing.

"Show me," Namjoon tells Hyosang and Hyosang pulls a InformaPad from his pocket and after a few moments Namjoon sees for himself the flags half-mast in the capitol, people solemn and black-clad in respect for the dead prince, killed by the Red Planet rebels. The king, in mourning robes, addressing his people, promising them that he will destroy Red Planet and avenge his son, their prince.

"He knows Prince Seokjin is alive but declared him dead," Hoseok states after a moment, voice calmer. "He doesn't expect him to come back. He doesn't _want_ his son to come back."

The king is an opportunistic bastard, selfish and cruel, and the opposite of the prince at every turn. Namjoon isn't entirely surprised. He thought the king didn't care that his son is more popular than him, that people prefer the prince over the king. He doesn’t know if that is the reason, or if he bowed to the pressure from his powerful friends. But whatever it is, the king has decided that the prince is no longer needed, that he is in fact a hurdle that must be eliminated.

Anger sears through Namjoon's heart. After everything he'd done for the king, every drop of blood he'd shed, all he'd asked for was to be near Prince Seokjin for the rest of his life. The king should have known better.

Namjoon doesn't have the reputation he has for nothing.

As long as he's alive, nothing will ever, ever touch the prince.

Seokjin will always be safe on his watch.

 

Seokjin staggers back against the wooden fence as if all strength has left him. Yoongi crouches down beside him, and doesn't look at Jungkook who kneels down at the prince's other side.

"I-" Seokjin looks up, eyes focusing on the grassy field beyond them. He's taking huge breaths as if he cannot get enough air into his lungs, and Yoongi can see his eyes are filled with tears. It's been a long, long time since Yoongi has seen Seokjin cry.

"-I didn't think he hated me. I never thought-" Seokjin gasps, and the tears fall. Jungkook makes a sound like he's in pain and reaches out.

"Hyung." Jungkook's long fingers wrap around Seokjin's wrist. "Hyung, what's wrong?"

"The person who I thought loved me best, doesn’t love me at all," Seokjin whispers, and he drops his head, shoulders shaking as he starts to sob. Jungkook shares a wide eyed glance with Yoongi.

Yoongi wraps both arms around Seokjin, and Seokjin leans into him easily as Jungkook wraps himself around Seokjin from the other side.

"You're wrong," Yoongi whispers into the prince's dark hair, "the person who loves you best in the world, it was never him." He kisses Seokjin's hair. "In the whole universe, we love you best. Me, Jungkook, Namjoon, Hoseok, Jimin and Taehyung. We love you more than anyone else. You will never lose that." He holds on to Seokjin as he cries. "You will never lose us."

 

"What do we do?" Taehyung asks.

They're sitting by Jimin's bedside. Jimin's asleep, worn out from the blood loss and the minor surgery. The prince is sitting quietly, eyes on Jimin. Namjoon hadn't missed the redness of his eyes and the darkened patches on Yoongi's shirt.

"We have to show everyone that the prince is alive and the king is a liar!" Jungkook snaps.

"But we can't stay here, they'll find us," Taehyung says woriedly.

"We have to get our ship back. We need to get off this planet!" Yoongi adds angrily.

"Everyone-" the prince looks around at them all and just by the tone of his voice, Namjoon can tell what's coming. He braces himself. "Thank you. All of you, you've watched over me so carefully. Protected me at great risk to your own lives. But I think it's time to stop." The prince takes a breath, and at the corner of his eye Namjoon sees Yoongi flinch. "I release you. I am no longer a Prince, I don't need protection anymore. So go your own ways, live your own lives. You owe me nothing."

There is silence. Everyone too stunned to speak.

Then Hosoek leans forward. "Your-"

"I'm already dead. I won't have you die too!" The prince snaps.

"What about all the people who love you?" Jungkook yells, and Namjoon blinks, surprised. All this time they've known each other, he's never seen Jungkook speak to the prince this way. "What about all the people who'd follow you? Are you just going to abandon them? Are you going to abandon us?"

The prince looks at Jungkook helplessly. "Jungkook, I'm not- I can't- I have nothing now."

Jungkook shakes his head angrily. "You're so stupid, hyung. Weren't you listening to Yoongi hyung before? Whatever happens, you'll never lose us! If you're a prince or not, even if you have nothing, you'll have us!"

Yoongi is looking at Jungkook with his mouth open in surprise. And Taehyung is crying quietly on Jimin's bed.

The prince reaches his arms out towards Jungkook and Taehyung, both of whom immediately rush into his arms.

Namjoon takes a step closer, Hoseok and Yoongi flanking him on either side.

"Jungkook is right, my prince. We are yours, no matter what."

The prince's eyes are shining when he lifts his face towards them.

"Whatever comes, we'll face it together."

 

Hyosang and the left over Red Planet rebels help them get their ship back. Surprise attack is always a good strategy, get them while they're not expecting it. And there is no one that can match Taehyung in the skies. For their trouble, the rebels get away with two ships of their own, state of the art war birds, that will let them fight back against Lee Corp on the planet and off world.

Namjoon doesn’t know what the future holds. For the moment they're going to lay low, find an out of the way planet and figure out their options. Maybe get in contact with the prince's friends and allies, not to mention his own contacts. Right now, they just need stay a few steps ahead of their enemies.

He walks into the flight control deck, everyone is gathered around the viewing window. Thousands of miles away, a black hole is in the process of swallowing a twin star. It is a spectacular sight, the light of the suns getting trapped within the gravity of the black hole. Hoseok is standing beside Taehyung, most likely to ensure that he does not take them too close to the event. One nightmarish foray close to a black hole was enough for a lifetime, Namjoon agrees.

"I think we should rename the ship," Jimin says suddenly, looking up at them from where he's sitting cross-legged beside Jungkook on the floor.

"To what?" Yoongi asks curiously.

Jimin grins up at them. "Princess Jin."

Jungkook bursts into laughter.

"I like it," Namjoon says, eyes on the prince who is smiling.

"Me too," Yoongi agrees, nodding.

"We like it too!" Taehyung shouts form behind them.

"No one will ever know what it means, except for us," Jungkook says, smiling up at the prince.

Prince Seokjin reaches down and ruffles Jungkook's hair. "Alright, then."

The prince's eyes are happy crescents when Namjoon looks at him. It's the first time after Chandra that the prince has smiled so freely.

"From now on, we're the Princess Jin," Namjoon declares and gets enthusiastic applause in return.

 

They still take turns guarding the prince. Yoongi doesn't think they'll ever stop that. Jungkook has taken the first watch, so Yoongi wraps Seokjin up in his arms and settles down to sleep.

He holds one of Seokjin's hands with his, tracing patterns over the palm. Seokjin is watching him with warm eyes and Yoongi remembers that day on the tree with the guards shouting in panic below them and the way Seokjin had held his hand and smiled. He'd realised that Seokjin is the bravest person in the galaxy.

He knows the future is going to be harder than anything they have ever faced before. Seokjin has a destiny that he will not walk away from and Yoongi had promised to never leave his side.

"Good night, my Seokjin," he whispers, pressing his lips to the prince's palm.

When he lifts his head, Seokjin is watching him. He is smiling.

Then he leans in and kisses Yoongi lightly on the lips.

"Goodnight, Yoongi," Seokjin says softly, and Yoongi leans in and kisses him in return.

 

 ***


	2. Empire of Stars

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> He has lead the people he loves into an impossible war, against such odds that should not be surmountable.  
> A few hundred rebels against a whole empire? A prince against an emperor? A son rising against his father?

The word gets out, Namjoon makes sure the word gets out, that the prince is alive. In the end it is Red Planet. Red Planet, stirred on by Hyosang and the Chandran rebels, that gather around the prince like a cloak, protective and furious. And the prince becomes, not entirely by his design, the heart of the rebellion. All those planets that had fought, bled and died for their freedom, however reluctantly, fall in behind the prince, one by one against the reign of the emperor. They have pockets of rebels operating across star systems, spreading the word that the prince is alive and doing their best to rouse the people against the emperor.

All the while, the emperor tightens his grip on his worlds. Namjoon knows the emperor would have heard of the prince's existence. And the increased deployment of the guard across the star systems means that he has no intention of taking the prince back. And once they begin to actively hunt the prince, he declares war on the empire he had helped build.

 

"The delegates from Acta and Inha will arrive in two days, my prince," Hoseok announces, eyes fixed on his Informapad.

They are deep in the natural underground caverns of Aurora, which has become their main base. The local rebels, to whom the prince had surrendered all those years ago to end a civil war thereby earning their trust and esteem, had welcomed the prince and with him, nearly a hundred rebels.

"I wonder what our mothers would say if they saw us now. Rebels!" Taehyung exclaims.

He is dressed in his flying uniform, ready for a minor scouting party on a communications outpost on a tiny moon on Aurora's outer rim, which if successful would allow them to disrupt communications amongst the emperor's armies. Taehyung has become something of a legend amongst the rebels for his genius flying skills. Every scouting team that has had him as a member, have returned whole. Namjoon knows that they will not be able to keep going for too long. They do not have a tenth of the resources that the emperor has. To put it mildly, they are hanging on by the skin of their teeth.

"You were always the troublemaker. I'm sure she expected this," Jimin says, looking bemused by the Red Planet badge, a crimson world orbiting a golden star in a black background, pinned to Taehyung's jacket.

Taehyung shrugs easily. "Yeah, I was a troublemaker. But you were a perfect baby."

Jimin smiles at his friend. "Someone had to keep an eye on you."

Prince Seokjin looks down from the maps of the star systems lighting up the ceiling. "You are doing something good, something noble. Your families should be proud of that and if I get the chance to see them again, I would say so."

Hyosang appears at the door. He leads the Chandran rebels and has proven himself to be a pilot almost as good as Taehyung.

"Taehyung, time," he says, with a nod to the prince.

Jimin looks up as Taehyung rises to his feet.

"Try not to break the moon, Taehyung," he says softly.

Taehyung grins at him.

"It was an asteroid. And it wasn't my fault," Taehyung counters, heading for Hyosang waiting for him at the door.

He stops as he passes the prince and bows.

"I will go now, my prince."

The prince smiles.

"Fly true, Taehyung."

Taehyung smiles, nods and skips after Hyosang.

Jungkook nonchalantly detaches himself from the prince's side. He heads over to Jimin and leans against the cavern wall beside him without a word.

The prince shares a smile with Yoongi and gets back to his map.

 

Two days later, after the delegations from Acta and Inha arrive, the rebels hold a meeting. Yoongi stands behind the prince. Jungkook had taken over the combat training of some of the more inexperienced rebels, a job Yoongi had wholeheartedly refused and had fallen to Jungkook because Jungkook could never refuse the prince.

There are representatives of eight systems here, excluding the prince. And the leader of the Actan rebels, a white haired man with an unlined face and a missing hand, is starting to get on Yoongi's nerves.

"Why should we bleed to replace one tyrant with another?" The man, Biham, asks passionately. Yoongi grits his teeth. Acta has always been in the emperor's thrall, Yoongi doesn’t know why this man is here.

"Prince Seokjin is not his father," the Auroran elder answers. "He will not terrorise his people."

Despite the debacle all those years ago, Yoongi has always liked the Auroran people, especially their honest, upright nature.

"We do not know what an emperor he will make, I mean no offence, prince Seokjin," the leader of Rho says.

Yoongi is not expecting the prince to rise to his feet and he takes a step closer just to be safe.

"I will not make an emperor," the prince announces, in a quiet voice that carries through the chamber. "Once my father is removed from power, I will disband the empire."

Chaos.

Namjoon and Hoseok manage to hide their shock enough to call for calm. But the delegates work themselves into an uproar and Yoongi steers the prince out and away from it all.

Outside, the prince staggers and Yoongi steps close, letting the prince lean on him.

"It is the only way," the prince whispers, resting his head on Yoongi's shoulder.

Yoongi wraps an arm around the prince and looks down at him.

"I know, my prince."

"But I don't know-" the prince leans back and looks at Yoongi with tormented eyes "-I don't know if it's the right way."

Yoongi touches the prince's face with careful fingers.

"I trust you."

The prince smiles. Yoongi hears footsteps and steps in front of the prince.

Namjoon and Hoseok appear. Yoongi steps back.

Namjoon halts before the prince and for a long moment they look at each other.

"Prince Seokjin, is it your true intent to disband the empire?"

"We can't keep doing this. Too many people are dying. Namjoon, we need to end this."

"It is a leader's duty to bear the deaths of people for the cause," Namjoon says.

"I will not be a leader who comes to power by stepping over the bodies of those who died for me. I will not."

Silence. Then Namjoon nods.

"There is only one way to end this, my prince. You must take the throne."

The prince's shoulders slump. Yoongi clenches his hands at his sides.

"I need to talk to him, Namjoon. The more this goes on, the worse it gets and harder to fix. I have to see my father."

"He will never abdicate, prince Seokjin, you know this," Hoseok says softly.

The prince keeps his eyes on Namjoon.

"But you can take care of that, Namjoon."

Namjoon exhales, then nods.

"Yes, my prince. I can do that."

 

It is a grunt, low and pained, that wakes him. He is off the bed, guns in his hands in a beat.

"Yoongi?" The prince murmurs sleepily.

"Stay on the bed, Jin," he tells the prince just as a figure shifts against the shadows of the back wall.

The figure raises a hand, and Yoongi sees the tell-tale shine of a gun from the dim light of the corridor outside.

"Jin, get down," he shouts and shoots. The explosion of the bullets break the silence for the briefest moments and Yoongi sees the attacker stagger back. He turns back to the prince just as the prince switches the light on. Dim, yellow light fills the room and the prince is safe. Yoongi checks the room for other attackers before making his way to the body slumped on the floor. The dead man is wearing the midnight blue of Acta. Those traitorous bastards.

"No!"

Yoongi spins. The prince is standing at the door, staring down in horror at something Yoongi cannot see. Yoongi reaches the prince just as the prince drops to his knees.

Jungkook is slumped against the floor. His stomach is a bloody mess. There are three bodies, Actans, around him. The floor and walls are splattered with blood.

"Jungkook," the prince whispers, reaching for Jungkook's blood drenched hand. Jungkook's eyes flicker open just as Namjoon arrives, a gun in one hand and a dagger in the other.

"We were betrayed by the Actans," Yoongi tells him.

Namjoon nods, face impassive as he looks down at Jungkook.

"Call for a medic."

 

Namjoon had been in the emperor's service when the prince had found Jungkook, a skinny, wilful boy. Only a few years older than the boy himself, prince Seokjin had taken on the boy's care without hesitation. Namjoon had watched Jungkook recover and grow. Jungkook had become desperately attached to the prince, and much to the displeasure of the emperor the prince had loved him back.

He watches his prince now, standing vigil by Jungkook's medpod, where he'd been placed under stasis to prevent further damage and infection. Yoongi is his usual shadow beside the prince. Jimin is standing by the medpod, his face lowered to hide his red-rimmed eyes. Taehyung is on his way back from his mission. It is unlikely, the medics had said, that Jungkook will recover from this. The damage is too severe. All that can be done is to pause what is coming. But eventually, he will die from his wounds.

Namjoon meets Hoseok's calm eyes, and ventures forward.

"Prince Seokjin."

No reaction.

"We have him."

The prince shifts and turns. His dark eyes are hooded, the skin around them dark and bruised.

"Don't leave his side," he instructs Jimin, and follows after Namjoon.

Namjoon easily matches the prince's long legged stride.

"My prince, the Actans would have informed on this location to the imperial army. We must evacuate," Hoseok advices.

"Enough running," the prince answers. "I'm done."

 

Even with all his people imprisoned or killed, the head of the Actans dares to be defiant before the prince.

"You will destroy everything," the silver haired Biham spits. "Our planet was a poor, forgotten world before the emperor. Now we prosper. We do not want you or your ragged band of rebels to ruin us!"

Yoongi keeps a hand on his gun and his eyes on the prince, who had taken the other.

"Did you order it?" The prince asks impassively.

Biham draws himself up on his knees.

"For the future of my world I did what I must."

The prince walks slowly towards him.

"I have not once borne ill will towards a planet or its people," the prince says, looking down at the defiant Actan. "You have changed that."

It is a sudden shock, when the gun is fired. Biham topples, a surprised expression on his face. He had not expected it. Judging from the reactions of others in the room, the prince had surprised them too.

The prince turns and Namjoon steps in his way. 

"I need to end this. Get me to my father," the prince commands, striding past him.

Yoongi follows him out.

As expected, the prince heads back towards the med bay, where he had been since Jungkook was brought there nine hours ago.

"Jin."

The prince slows but doesn't stop. Yoongi steps out of his place and steps in front of the prince, barring his way.

"If we are heading to battle, we cannot take him with us. And we cannot leave him here."

Yoongi sees the words hit home in the way the prince's eyes widen.

"What are you trying to say?"

He braces himself.

"Let him wake up. Let him say goodbye."

Jungkook had been a smug little bastard from the get go. But he had loved the prince with a fierceness that was matched by a rare few. And these words, even if they have to be said, taste like ash on his tongue.

The prince takes a step back, away.

"If he wakes up, he will die."

"He would hate this, Jin. You know that. He would hate being trapped."

The prince turns his face to the side. Yoongi doesn't need to see. Just from the way the prince's jaw is clenched, he knows the prince is holding back tears.

"You can't ask this of me," the prince whispers.

"Jin," he says, as gently as he can. "You are the person he loves best in the world. There is no one else that can make this decision."

 

The medpod slides open with barely a hiss. Jungkook seems paler than usual, but otherwise he might just be asleep. His abdomen is covered by an opaque shield to protect the wounds from being exposed to open air. The lights indicating core vital measurements below the pod start flickering rapidly as he begins to wake. Prince Seokjin waits beside the medpod, Taehyung and Jimin standing on the other side. Yoongi stands behind the prince, further than he would have at any other time. Namjoon stands further back with Hoseok.

The prince leans forward when Jungkook’s eyelids flicker and open.

“Jungkook,” the prince says softly.

Jungkook turns his head slightly and finds the prince. Jungkook sighs and smiles.

Prince Seokjin smiles back. Jungkook’s eyes draw close and the prince leans in fearfully.

“Jungkook?”

Jungkook opens his eyes slowly and his lips part.

“Hyung,” Jungkook whispers.

The prince’s fingers clench beside the medpod before he reaches out and gently touches Jungkook’s hand resting over his chest.

“I'll find you amongst the stars, my Jungkook. Fly true.”

Jungkook's fingers wrap around the prince's hand and squeezes once then relaxes. The lights on the pod dim and disappear, already programmed to not attempt resuscitation. A choked cry breaks the silence and the prince falls to his knees. Yoongi takes a step forward and pauses. Jimin and Taehyung grip on to each other as they sob silently. He hears Hoseok sniffing quietly beside him and lifts his face up to the roof of the cavern. Minerals glint in the dark stone like stars in the night sky. One more star to add to that vast infinity. 

War has touched his prince and his heart burns with anger, grief and a momentary sense of self-loathing.

Yoongi finally kneels beside his prince, Namjoon leaves when the prince leans into him without hesitation.

Forward is the only way. He has done what he must. Now he has a battle to plan.

 

It is a good plan. Dangerous, almost impossible but good. It keeps the prince away from the main battles until they reach their home planet Esra.

Esra.

Even if they get to the capital Syr without any major trouble, getting into the palace will be tricky. Tricky as in cannot be done in a regular circumstance by regular people.

This however is not a regular circumstance. Nor are they regular people.

"I don't like it," Taehyung says, chewing on a nail. "I don't want to be on Myca and leave the prince unprotected."

Namjoon raises as eyebrow.

"Don't push it, Taehyung," Yoongi tell him.

The prince will have Namjoon and Yoongi himself protecting him on Syr. If all goes well, most of the emperor’s knights will be distracted on the closest moon, Myca, where the crux of their attack will focus on destroying the emperor's main weapons base.

"I will be safer than you, Taehyung," the prince tells him softly.

Princess Jin is flying across star systems, at the rear of their procession of rebel ships, heading towards Esra. Taehyung, Jimin and Hoseok will be joining the fighting on Myca. Jimin nor Hoseok has said anything. Yoongi is sure neither are too pleased with Namjoon's plan. But it is a good plan. A small group will go unnoticed when a larger group may not.

Yoongi is the best knight their star system has ever produced.

He was born for this.

 

The whole city is silent when they arrive. The rebels' attack on Myca had begun an hour ago and the emperor, stunned at an attack so close to home, appears to be mobilising all but the palace guard for the counter attack. The streets are deserted, and all that is in the air are military crafts. The last time he had seen this city like this had been before it had been declared the capital of the empire, during the war where he had won Sihyuk his empire.

They enter the palace through the kitchens, the very same entrance the prince had used during his escapades into the city. They do their best to avoid the staff, following the prince’s orders. No one gets hurt that does not need to.

As soon as they enter the palace, he realises that the prince needn’t have worried as every staff member they come across let them pass with a deep bow to the prince.

He expects the emperor to be in the command room, overseeing the battle, trying to come up with ways to rid himself of the rebels and his son once and for all. Old fool.

He leads the prince through the back corridors, which run parallel to the massive stone pillars that lead up towards the command room. They need to avoid the palace security scanners that would recognise the prince's biosignature immediately.

"He will have knights with him," Yoongi comments casually, as they near the command room.

Namjoon looks at him sideways.

"We'll need to draw them out, get the emperor alone."

Yoongi smirks.

"That can be done."

The prince halts, and turns back. Namjoon keeps his eyes on the large metallic doors and monitors the three knights that stand there on guard.

"Yoongi," he hears the prince say.

"I will get this done, my prince."

"But-"

"My prince, Jin, trust me. This is what I was born to do." Yoongi's voice is soft. Namjoon wonders if Yoongi knows how his voice changes, how he changes when he is with the prince. The best knight the galaxy has ever produced, in a palm of a prince. Namjoon doesn't fault him, after all, isn't he the same? Willing to do anything for this boy.

"How will I live with myself if-"

"You have to do what you were born to do. Jin, this is the fate of worlds. Be brave."

Silence.

He turns just as Yoongi steps out of the prince's arms, and with a glance at him, walks out into the open. The knights react immediately, drawing their weapons and Yoongi attacks.

"My prince," he calls and the prince turns agonised eyes towards him.

"We must-" A squadron of knights appear behind Yoongi.

"You must go," he tells the prince, as Yoongi ducks for cover behind a stone pillar, his guns firing in both directions. "Your father will be alone. End this."

"Namjoon-"

He smiles, his gun in one hand and his dagger in the other.

"Fly true, prince Seokjin."

 

He doesn't look back. He cannot. But it is difficult to block out the sounds, the shouts and the screams. He has lead the people he loves into an impossible war, against such odds that should not be surmountable. A few hundred rebels against a whole empire? A prince against an emperor? A son rising against his father?

He stands before the doors.

He had tried to be a good son. But he understands now that he would never be. Never be the son that his father had wanted.

 _'Prince Seokjin. Welcome,'_ the familiar voice of the palace AI greets.

The doors open inwards.

Within, dozens of projections monitor the battle on Myca. He sees flames and smoke. Warbirds chasing each other against the red sky.

Emperor Sihyuk stands amidst the battle.

The doors close silently behind him.

"I never wanted this. Not for you. I knew you'd hate it."

His father had stood on his dais, clad in royal red robes and mourned for him.

"Why did you try to kill me? I'm your son. Why?" His voice cracks at the end and he clenches his fists.

His father sighs. "You were never good at this. Seeing through people's words, their actions. You got attached to people, too sentimental. Being emperor would have destroyed you."

"So you decided to kill me instead?"

His father turns towards him. War rages on behind him. "Don't you see? I was giving you your freedom. Go where you want. Do what you want. Marry a low born knight. Anything. Everything. All you had to do was to disappear. But you let the rebels use you. After that, there was nothing I could do."

"You…were letting me go?"

His father approaches him slowly. His eyes are weary, face haggard. He looks older. So much older than the last time he had seen him. 

"You are my son. All I have ever wanted for you is happiness."

His heart aches with how much he has missed his father. He should have done this earlier. So much pain would have been spared if he had just talked to his father. After all, he had been a father before he had been an emperor.

"Father-"

His father draws a gun from his robes and points it at him.

Seokjin takes an involuntary step back. He can only stare in stunned horror.

Namjoon would be disappointed in him.

"I did say you weren't good at this, never expected you to be so bad at it though," the emperor tells him with a slight shake of his head.

"Father-"

The cool metal of the gun presses against his forehead.

"Do you know how much money it takes to win a war, Seokjin? How much money it takes to simply maintain an army?" The emperor asks, sounding genuinely curious. "Their money won me the war, giving up a few planets for that was nothing."

He doesn't know. He has never known how much money his father had spent on his wars. But he knows the cost, the cost of war, cost of being royalty, cost of holding on to power that wasn't ever truly theirs.

"What about the people? The people on those planets? You're supposed to protect them, not your rich friends!"

The emperor laughs. "You are a fool, Seokjin. An emperor must use people. Rich or poor, all people have their uses. And when they are no longer useful, one must be wise enough to let go."

Seokjin understands what is about to happen the moment he sees Namjoon appear behind the emperor. There is blood on his face. Namjoon catches his eyes for a moment, and he holds his breath and gives him way.

"I wholeheartedly agree with that," Namjoon says and the emperor spins around.  "You old fool. Did you really think I'd let you touch him?”

Namjoon shoots. He does not miss.

The emperor collapses to his knees, blood pouring from his shoulder.

Namjoon comes to stand beside him.

 “He needs to die,” he says softly.

Seokjin recoils.

“No!” He turns to him, forcing Namjoon to look at him. “No. He is my father.”

For a moment, Namjoon watches him with unreadable eyes. Then he nods, and steps back.

 “The empire is yours, my prince. Do with it as you will.”

 

The flags in the capital city are half-mast. The people are dressed sombrely. The emperor, crowned only a week ago, stands on the dais in deep red robes of mourning. His father, the former emperor has passed. He had been struck down by an infection as he’d been recovering from the uprising at one of the luxury resorts on one of the moons off Esra.

He watches the prince from a distance. It suits him, emperorship. Even in mourning, he belongs on that dais with the people watching him adoringly.  Perhaps one day he will have the courage to tell him. It had been necessary for Seokjin to know the cost of war. Even if Seokjin may not agree, he has only ever done what he believed was best for him. Namjoon loves him more than anything he has ever known and that used to keep him awake at night with fear.

But for now, he will let the emperor grieve. And heal. There is time.

 

He finds Seokjin by his favourite tree. It seems smaller now, not the terrifyingly tall tree from when they were boys. Dusk has settled in the garden and the emperor's new, and temporary, guardian knights loiter around him. Yoongi walks over slowly.

Seokjin’s bright smile belays the tiredness in his eyes. Yoongi knows he'd been closed in with Hoseok and delegates from all planets that belong to the empire. They had not expected the negotiations for voluntary exit from the empire to flow smoothly but he knows the emperor has been surprised by how many worlds prefer to remain within the empire. And those that have chosen leave had done so with stunned gratitude. And those that had been forced out of the empire, namely Acta, continues to lobby the emperor for reunification.

"You should not be walking yet," the emperor rebukes him softly.

As much as he hates to admit it, he had not emerged from his last fight unscathed.

"How could I miss this?" He asks just as he hears a cheerful greeting. He turns his head to find Taehyung, Jimin and Hoseok heading towards them.

Namjoon had left Esra almost as soon as the emperor was crowned. A well-deserved holiday, he had said as he left. Yoongi doesn't believe it, that Namjoon would leave Seokjin and doesn’t think that he would be able to keep himself away for too long.

There is a gentle smile on the emperor's face when Yoongi looks back at him.

"How are you, Jin?"

The smile fades as Seokjin turns to him. He takes a deep breath, then exhales.

"It is the fate of worlds," emperor Seokjin smiles. "I will be brave."

Yoongi feels his breath catch.

"I'm with you."

Seokjin’s smile widens.

"That is why I'm brave."

Taehyung and Jimin pour them glasses of golden liquor. They stand in a circle, glasses raised.

"To you my friends, my family. I thank you for believing in me, for not letting me be lost.” Seokjin lifts his face towards the sky. “And to our Jungkook, shining amongst the stars."

 

In time, their story will be legend. They will be stars that glitter out of reach, their names forever etched on to that vast expanse of unending sky. Children will sit wide eyed as they are told of the betrayal of Chandra, or the impossible feats of Taehyung and the heartbreaking heroism of Jungkook. They will know of the unbreakable loyalty of Jimin and of the wise Hoseok. They will hold each other in fear when they hear of brave Yoongi who had taken on dozens of knights to protect his prince. And smile when they hear how they had lived gloriously, emperor and knight, until the end of their days. They will hear of Namjoon, who had fought to win the young prince the empire and who had later been exiled by the emperor for an unforgivable, unknowable crime. They will marvel, gape and cry out as prince Seokjin defeats his corrupt father to save his people.  The empire of Seokjin that will hold star systems together for eons. It all began with a single ship, the fastest in the galaxy.

They called it the Princess Jin.

 

***

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you to everyone for waiting so patiently^^


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